Strong alliance! Major players in the American cannabis industry merge to form a unified authority, speaking up for the industry.

According to industry media reports in the United States, two major marijuana industry organizations have joined forces in Washington with the aim of expanding the collective voice of nearly 500,000 employees as the new US government is sworn in.

According to reports, the US Cannabis Roundtable (NCR) and the US Cannabis Council (USCC) have joined forces to announce the formation of the US Cannabis Roundtable, combining their lobbying power and policy advocacy efforts to significantly increase their strength! This unified organization represents cannabis cross-state operators across the United States, including prominent companies such as Cresco Labs, Curaleaf Holdings, Green Thumb Industries, Trulieve Cannabis Corp., and Verano Holdings, as well as single-state operators.

At this point, the merged American Marijuana Roundtable will represent approximately 13,000 cannabis businesses and 450,000 full-time employees from 38 states across the U.S. Its establishment comes at a critical time for the regulated marijuana industry, as a unified voice is more important than ever before.

Charlie Bachtell, CEO of Cresco Labs and former President of the National Cannabis Roundtable and the US Cannabis Council, stated in a statement that the talent behind both organizations will come together to create a "unified authoritative body advocating for the legal cannabis industry".

Bachtell emphasized that 2025 will be a critical time for the regulated cannabis industry, as the newly elected Congress and incoming president openly support and promise to push for sensible cannabis reform.

Despite many uncertainties regarding the new government's stance on marijuana, Kim Rivers, CEO of the well-known marijuana enterprise Trulieve and Vice Chair of NCR, points out that President-elect Trump has clearly expressed support for marijuana reclassification and the SAFE Banking Act during his campaign.

"President Trump's support represents the enormous changes that are taking place in marijuana policies and industry advocacy. This is the first time in history that a Republican president has supported these measures, and our newly formed coalition will provide the best position for the industry and help the president achieve these goals."

In addition to rescheduling meeting times, the newly formed US Marijuana Roundtable will also lobby for the SAFE Banking Act and encourage reform to allow domestic marijuana companies to trade on major US stock exchanges.

The key initiatives that this organization will advocate for include:

1. Reclassifying marijuana as a Schedule III controlled substance;

2. Allowing individual states to determine their own marijuana policies through state-level legislation;

3. Passing the SAFE Banking Act (Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act) for marijuana;

4. Ending the current non-U.S. regulations that allow foreign marijuana companies to list on NASDAQ and the New York Stock Exchange, while prohibiting U.S. government-approved marijuana companies from doing so.

It is worth noting that the merger took place less than a week before the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump for his second term.

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